vlad.tribnet.com / Issue #164 / Opinion / Reading article...

When Yeltsin fired his cabinet March 23, stocks dropped as jittery investors worried about the future. Commentators and politicians around the world fretted about what this meant for Russia.

Things have settled since then, as people seem to be concluding that it was another dramatic gesture by a president known for such moves.

But a number of Primorye residents have been expressing more down-to-earth sentiments. In interviews with the Vladivostok News, they showed not fear or hope, but cynicism and resignation. Seven years of post-Communist rule haven’t brought the improvements in life that many had hoped for. The poorest have seen their living standards fall while a few grow richer.

A glance at the typical issue of a local paper — choose your news from any political perspective — shows that the region’s Depression is far from turning the corner. The same is true of most of Russia outside the cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg, which have the stable government, political clout, and a taxation system that is balanced in their favor, not the regions.

It is only fair that Yeltsin insist on results from his cabinet. But the recent round of firings has the appearance of scapegoating. Yeltsin is the man at the top; he is ultimately responsible for the condition of the economy.

The residents of Primorye are right to demand back wages, unpaid child support, and a real improvement in their daily lives. And, sadly, they are right when they express skepticism about whether the present government can accomplish that.